Mad Monk: No Sevens final, no game in USA, and no news on Spanish trip

Tonight the JP Morgan Sevens final takes place in Bath. Defending champions London Irish will not be there, having finished third in their pool last weekend.

Nor will the senior squad be shipping up to Boston tomorrow.

There was talk earlier in the summer of an exhibition match against a United States development side.

Much as the NFL would like to develop a rugby union presence in the US at club level, the time was not right.

The plug was pulled before fans had the chance to part with their cash.

The same cannot be said of the Spanish.

Not long after we bought our tickets to see Irish play Olympus in Vallodolid, the Federacion Espanola de Rugby pulled their team out of the Amlin Cup. There is still no word from Europe’s governing body, the European Rugby Cup, about whether October’s planned fixture between the sides will take place.

I am starting to feel jinxed.

For the boys it’s back to training ahead of the first pre-season friendly in a week’s time.

This will be Nottingham away next Friday (7.45pm).

Traditionally the first pre-season friendly is a home fixture at Sunbury.

This year all three friendlies are away.

Perhaps Brian Smith wanted to address the problem of our away form.

More likely it has something to do with the close relationship between London Irish and forwards coach Glenn Delaney’s old club Nottingham.

If you are missing Sunbury, or just want to be there again ahead of their move to the site of the old Hazelwood golf course, you could do far worse than pop over tomorrow afternoon.

London Irish amateur club, the Wild Geese, are fielding their first team against Tonbridge. It was a very successful season last year that saw the Geese crowned National 3 South West champions and promoted to Division 2.

Both the amateur club and the Academy have benefitted from the closer relationship between the professional and amateur arms of the club. This relationship started last year.

The previous arrangement dual-registering professional players with both London Welsh and London Irish could not continue when the former were promoted to the same league as the latter.

Even though Welsh’s stay in the Premiership was brief, there has been no indication that Irish are keen to return to the previous arrangement.

Last weekend the Geese had two of their players, Scott Moore and George Owen, picked for the JP Premiership 7s qualifying group at Allianz Park.

In return seven academy players are starting tomorrow for the Geese.

The amateurs will no doubt be somewhat relieved that these lads are not being called up for duty in Bath tonight.